Upon witnessing this scene, the first two words that came to Ed's mind were "there are still experts" and "performance art".
He didn't mind someone helping him kill Antiya Lisi, after all, the battle had already lasted all night, and Little Green, some of the participating players had even logged off for various reasons. A battle that lasted for such a long time was indeed unnecessary.
But the problem is, isn't this just stealing your own lives?
As the archbishop who governs an entire province, Antiya Lisi's value is not only reflected in his edible value; the skills he possesses and the knowledge in his mind are exactly what Ed needs now.
Ed was never worried about the other party not telling the truth. Among the Stained Ones he had captured, there were many tough guys who were now obediently serving in the Wild Hunt in exchange for a period of time working on the assembly line.
To those Stained Ones, Ed can only say that "torturing life but not killing it" is the right thing to do.
But it's such a shame that Antiya Lisi died without confessing or even entering the Dungeon.
His mind raced with thoughts, but in the end, Ed pried the seed and the Territory Secret Pact out of Antiya Lisi's eye socket and handed them to Little Green. Accepting territory and analyzing plant samples had always been Little Green's job. As for Antiya Lisi's corpse...
Ed could still sense the power the other person possessed when they were alive, so he decided to make the best use of it.
In the past, victories only granted Territory Secret Pact and unlocked new symbiotic plants. This time, the addition of so many nutrients might not be such a bad thing.
As roots Spread from the ground and wrapped around the body of the archbishop who had ruined his reputation in his later years, some questions that had been unclear to Ed were suddenly answered.
No wonder the half-tree's combat power began to decline at a certain point. No wonder they didn't encounter resistance from the local root system when their roots entered Fir City. Antiya Lisi, who controlled all of this, might have already died at that time, but none of his players witnessed it.
The alleyway was much livelier than usual in the early morning. Some performance artists were running around the streets with their captured half-tree figures, and their noise clearly woke up the residents of Fir City who were staying at home.
The battle in the western district lasted all night. No matter how strong the hearts of these citizens were, they didn't get a good night's sleep. Now that they know the battle is over, although the archbishop didn't win, no one really cares about such a small matter.
Ed led Duma out of the dark alley. The street ahead was bustling with people, and Ed vaguely saw a strange figure.
The man was dressed in an old-fashioned priest's robe, holding a well-worn copy of the Holy Scripture in his hand, and a peregrine falcon perched on a withered branch on his shoulder, looking around.
He stood across the street looking at me, a smile that was hard to decipher.
As their eyes met, the young priest performed a standard Tree Worship Church ritual to Ed, and the peregrine falcon on his shoulder lowered its streamlined neck.
A group of players carried a half-tree man past Ed, and by the time they left, the young figure had disappeared across the street.
" Duma."
Ed whispered the devil's name.
" My Son of God, what are your orders?"
Have you seen that person across the street just now?
Who is it?
Ed looked up at Duma, wanting to ask if the four holes on her nose were for breathing.
He thought for a moment and then waved his hand.
"Perhaps I'm mistaken. There are still many important things to do in Fir City. Let's take a walk around here together."
"Yes, sir."
Fir City, a southern suburb.
The young priest walked through a blanket of white snow. This was the southernmost point of the Aduolin Province; further south he would enter the Fitz Province.
This name also originates from the surname of a nobleman before the Demonic Tide, but now, like Aduolin, it has become the name of a region.
As for the family to which this name originally belonged, they have disappeared into the history submerged by the Demonic Tide.
The young man strolled leisurely when the peregrine falcon on his shoulder suddenly spoke:
I'm hungry, I'm hungry.
Actually, you're not hungry, you just want to eat something.
There was no blame in the young priest's tone as he took a slightly cloudy, spherical object from his robe pocket.
The peregrine falcon seized the opportunity, lowered its head, pecked at the object, and immediately swallowed it whole.
Are you satisfied now?
The young priest asked jokingly, and the peregrine falcon nodded.
" Icarus, would you like to go and take a look south?"
"We are already at the southernmost point of the Aduolin Province."
The peregrine falcon expressed its confusion with a strange tone and unusual phrasing.
"Not in the southern part of the Aduolin Province."
"Could it be the southern part of the Tree Worship Church Theocracy?"
"Perhaps it needs to be even further south."
"Good."
The peregrine falcon gave a concise answer, then leaped from the young priest's shoulder, flapped its wings, and flew ahead to explore the way.
Watching the peregrine falcon disappear into the distance, the young priest murmured to himself:
"Eat, eat, that's how you'll become stronger quickly."
In Fir City, Ed led Duma into the cathedral, which had been reduced to ruins.
As the player forces advanced, this area was completely recaptured.
Stepping into the prayer hall of this cathedral, which now has no towers left, Ed is confronted with nearly a thousand empty, black, shell-like structures.
According to some players, the transformed half-tree beings emerge from these black shells, which are initially emerald green, then dark green, and finally turn completely black before the half-tree beings break free.
Thinking back to that mind-blowing scene, Ed couldn't help but marvel at the players' incredible tolerance.
Just as Ed was pondering what to do with the ruins, a faint light flickered beside him, and a tall figure began to rapidly emerge.
Willow's figure appeared in mid-air and landed on the ground with a "thud".
The lich looked at the ruins before him, then at Ed:
"Boss, is that all? Are you alright?"
Ed nodded:
"It's over. It's over in Valhalla too."
The lich's lips twitched, and he said, as if complaining or muttering to himself:
"I'm late again..."
What does "again" mean by being late?
The young lich reached up and rubbed his forehead:
"I just arrived in Valhalla, and the Soul Returner there told me the battle was over, and all that was left was to clean up the mess. I wanted to ask you about the situation, but I found that your main body was in a dormant state."
Ed nodded and asked again:
"So how did you find this place?"
"..."
Willow's expression froze.