The fashion industry in this World of Disorder is progressing very slowly. For most people, clothing is still at the level of "being lucky to have anything to wear," and there is no concept of style or standards.
Among the nomads Ed took in, a large portion of them wore only simply processed animal hides, which were enough to be worn as clothes or laid out as blankets.
So naturally, there was nothing strange hanging outside the window of the Fir City folks at that moment.
[ Howling Pothos ] looked around, then took off a coat similar in size to herself, and placed two silver coins and two tree seeds in a flowerpot on the windowsill.
Taking clothes from a fellow villager is already quite unethical; at least pay them something.
Two minutes later, having roughly figured out the front and back of the thing and how to wear it, [ Howling Pothos ] emerged from the alley.
At this point, he looked almost indistinguishable from a local.
His body was slightly hunched, his black hair was dry and messy, and his lifeless eyes lazily scanned his surroundings. Most importantly, a Symbiotic Tree as thick as a wrist was growing out from the side of his neck.
This is the clothing style and mental state of ordinary people under the rule of the Tree Worship Church; it looks a bit like a sustainable desire to die.
Having acquired its new outfit, [ Howling Pothos ] blended into the crowd on the street before nightfall.
Although it's unknown where these people come from or where they're going, as long as there are people on the streets, his exposure is probably not high.
As he walked, he also took notes of his surroundings.
If he can successfully evacuate, he plans to find the other players to share maps. Once they can piece together a rough map of the buildings inside Fir City, the rest of the operation will be much simpler.
[ Howling Pothos ] surveyed the surrounding buildings. The place where he landed seemed to be a residential area in Fir City, where most of the houses were purely for living, and shops were rarely seen.
The houses are mainly of two types: wooden and brick and stone. From the outside, the wooden buildings look newer, while the brick and stone buildings are quite dilapidated.
Based on the game's background, [ Howling Pothos ] speculates that a large portion of the brick and stone structures likely contain ancient artifacts from before the Demonic Tide.
After all, Bennett was the lord of this land a hundred years ago, and he couldn't possibly let all his people live a life of hardship and deprivation; that would be too foolish.
However, it was getting dark, and [ Howling Pothos ] felt she should make plans for what would happen after logging off. She wondered if the three-piece set of knocking on doors, begging for alms, and asking for lodging would be useful in this world.
As darkness fell completely, [ Howling Pothos ] followed a group of people forward, gradually leaving the residential area.
The area ahead was clearly reserved for people of higher status, because [ Howling Pothos ] encountered something here that she had never seen before in the World of Disorder —streetlights.
A large cluster of fluorescent plants surrounded the tall wooden pillars; although it was unclear how these things survived the winter, it didn't seem to matter.
Taking advantage of the absence of others, [ Howling Pothos ] approached a streetlamp and pried off a small sample of the plant from it.
Giving this thing to Ed might accelerate the infrastructure development of the Second Holy See's territory.
Lost in thought, [ Howling Pothos ] followed the light forward and saw a strangely shaped church in the distance.
This church is even smaller than the churches in Black Locust Town and Blue Gum Town. Although it is not tall, the area below it is large enough to accommodate it, like a lump of dough laid out on the ground waiting to be processed.
The classic black, white, and green color scheme, the sharp edges, and the stone bricks that embody the countless hours of craftsmanship...
Although some doubts arose, based on a few pictures he had seen in real life, [ Howling Pothos ] roughly determined that it was the church in Fir City, perhaps even "one of".
As the crowd moved forward, [ Howling Pothos ] noticed a clear age division among the people around him. Apart from children around ten years old, there were middle-aged believers of the Tree Worship Church, resembling a scene at the entrance of an elementary school.
However, the Tree Worship Church Theocracy does not have primary schools, only church schools and a seminary located in the Holy City.
However, the children around him quickly answered his question. One child said in a childish voice:
"The monk said this winter is far too cold, and tomorrow is the last day of choir practice."
The child's parents seemed to be hearing this for the first time as well, and quickly asked:
"Really? Then regarding the selection of apprentice cultivators... did that cultivator say anything?"
[ Howling Pothos ] I wanted to complain that "tiger parenting" also exists in another world, but then I thought about it again. The so-called choir might just be a selection ceremony for some kind of shady experiment. I couldn't help but feel that the Stained Ones were really hateful.
To avoid being exposed, he quickly walked a few steps to a spot not far in front of the mother and daughter and continued eavesdropping. The little girl thought for a moment and said:
"The monk said he would summon us again when spring arrives."
The parent breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
"That's good. Only two days left, so you must take good care of yourself..."
Just as [ Howling Pothos ] was about to continue listening, a cultivator wielding a sword suddenly reached out and stopped him.
"Hey, what are you doing? Don't you know there's a chapel up ahead?"
A small chapel? So that means there's also a cathedral?
[ Howling Pothos ] was taken aback for a moment, but in reality, it had already prepared its response and switched to translation mode.
He pointed to a lone, blurry figure in the distance and said:
"Sir, I'm here to take the child to choir. He ran too fast... He's right there."
The cultivator followed the gaze of [ Howling Pothos ] and indeed saw a somewhat familiar Little Boy in the distance.
He looked the man up and down, and felt that the man didn't seem as listless as he appeared, and even seemed quite young, so he asked with a puzzled expression:
"Is that your son?"
"He's my younger brother."
"Oh, no wonder."
The priest waved his hand impatiently:
"Go on, go on, just be careful next time."
[ Howling Pothos ] hurriedly nodded and bowed repeatedly:
"Definitely, definitely."
Although he appeared respectful on the surface, [ Howling Pothos ] had already begun to ponder in his heart.
Even small chapels aren't places adults are allowed to approach; how could such a place exist?
There must be a secret hidden beneath the chapel; if we could explore it, we might be able to bring back a lot of valuable information.
But how could he get close enough to infiltrate? There were over a dozen cultivators patrolling and maintaining order here, and he wasn't yet at the level to take on ten opponents single-handedly...
"Bang!!!!"
[ Howling Pothos ] Just then, a deafening roar came without warning.