Chapter 562

Chapter 184: Shades of Gray Nine

The clouds drifted across the sky as the sun rose.

A pungent wind blew from the town, causing the leaves of the green trees standing north of the mountains outside to sway. Warm sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, illuminating dozens of dirty, disheveled figures within the forest.

They were civilians who had barely escaped from the town. Among them were residents of Deer Town, parents and daughters who had come to watch the performance, and emaciated refugees likely fleeing from the southern region.

These people remained silent. Even though they were gradually moving away from the burning town and the terrifying demon, their fear had not yet dissipated. Their expressions were numb, heads bowed as they struggled along the foot of the mountain. Almost no one spoke; some women cried softly from burns, but dared not cry too loudly. Some turned back, looking towards the direction where thick smoke was rising, their faces showing sorrow.

Overnight, Deer Town no longer existed.

Before last night, this town still appeared prosperous, despite its remoteness and poverty. People’s eyes held hope; bustling lights at night, dancers captivating the heart. The town would become prosperous due to this disaster, and life would improve in the future. The mischievous young man could marry a beautiful girl.

—Such feelings now seemed like a dream.

There was no home.

No people.

Those who managed to escape alive might all be here.

The destructive demon descended from the sky. The Church’s resistance was almost futile. Those powerful knights who used to act with precision and instill peace, were drained of blood in vast, dazzling bloodstains as the demon unleashed its evil power, vanishing in an instant.

Then came hell.

Many died; many spouses lost each other; many children lost their parents. Corpses were incomplete, limbs flying, heads flying, struck by lightning, turning instantly into charcoal. Thereafter, it was nearly impossible to see any survivors.

Those who made it here were undoubtedly very lucky.

This luck made them feel that perhaps the gods still favored them, allowing them to survive such hell. Although most people had not yet fully grasped this reality.

But they survived.

Among these people, there were even those who faced the disaster head-on when the demon first arrived, those who had fled from the south. They did not know why they were still alive or how they followed the crowd to this place. Though they were so thin they could barely walk, with feces in their pants, the foul smell making it unbearable for others to approach, they were still alive, gritting their teeth and continuing, not collapsing.

They survived.

Those who lost their fiancées, parents, and children; someone who brought their whole family to watch the performance, was now left alone, but as long as they were alive, there was still hope.

Swallowing their tears, they gritted their teeth and continued to live.

Sunlight poured between the trees, the sky dotted with fluffy white clouds. Eagles flew overhead, surveying the earth. The people who escaped from the town scattered, weaving through the forest at the foot of the mountain, aimlessly, without direction. Soon, they began to climb up the mountain path.

The first demon came from the south of the town, then from the east. Many people were said to have escaped from the west side, but no one knew their current status or if they truly escaped. No one knew if there were still demons on that side. But those who fled from the north only had this mountain path to take.

Originally, there was no path, but since Deer Town had many hunters, they often hunted here. With frequent use, a path emerged. They were familiar with this area, knowing that crossing this not-so-high mountain would lead to safety. There were wild beasts, fruits, streams, everything needed. After walking north for three to five days, they could reach nearby villages.

They wouldn’t die anymore…

As the crowd stepped onto the narrow mountain trail, breathing fresh, unpolluted air, the trees receded, revealing bare ridges. Ahead, the view suddenly became clear. Soft sunlight bathed their faces. A man in front rubbed his sore eyes.

He took a deep breath, feeling as if he had just emerged from a tormenting nightmare. His tense shoulders relaxed, and the sense of post-trauma exhaustion finally felt real in his heart.

The man lifted his head, staring with bloodshot eyes, his cracked lips trembling, as if unable to believe it. He uttered an incredulous exclamation, “We… we are still alive…”

After saying this, he saw a woman nearby collapse to her knees, crying out loud. Someone tore off tattered sleeves to start bandaging wounds, an old man with bare feet leaned against a tree trunk, and someone rested on a green rock, tears welling in their eyes, lowering their head to laugh faintly, the laughter pale.

A breeze blew past, stirring their hair filled with soot, revealing ordinary faces, either crying or laughing.

Then, shadows appeared from beyond the mountain.

First noticing that figure was the man positioned near the front of the crowd. He saw a figure emerge from behind the ridge ahead, a distant silhouette, difficult to discern whether male or female, young or old. However, the robe worn glistened with a golden hue under the sunlight.

It was a priest from the Holy Church.

The man looked at the figure, after a brief moment of shock and panic, recognizing that it certainly wasn’t a demon. It was definitely a priest’s robe. He opened his mouth to call out but couldn’t make a sound. Overwhelmed with joy, tears finally spilled from his reddened eyes.

In his blurry vision, the figure stood high on a distant hill, seemingly having noticed them, turning their head.

Waving his hand behind him, more figures in cassocks appeared one after another.

“God above…”

The man was so excited he didn’t know what to say. He clasped his hands tightly in front of his chest, gazing at the familiar figures on the distant ridge. From the depths of his heart, he let out the most sincere prayer.

By then, many people had followed his gaze and seen those standing on the hill. They recognized them as clergy members.

Then they were overjoyed.

The elderly man who had been sitting on the ground trembled as he stood up. The woman who had cried out in anguish began to run toward the other side of the mountain. They all felt saved, believing that the kind and merciful monks would treat them with the best food and sweetest water because they were all children of God.

These people who had barely escaped from the clutches of demons and the scorching burning grounds, whose numbness had almost made them lose their senses, felt an instant surge of hunger, thirst, fatigue, and fear upon seeing the clergy members. Some waved and shouted, while others laughed and cried as they stumbled forward.

Finally… they were saved…

It felt like they had been reborn.

Then, they saw the figure in the middle of the hill looking down and waving again to the people on either side, as if giving some sort of command or signal.

In the next moment, golden light burst forth.

Buzz—

The sound of a miracle rose, and brilliant light suddenly surged from the ridge. Then something whistled through the air, carrying a blinding light and a fierce wind, flying toward them.

That light flickered in their eyes for a moment.

Sizzle!

A soft sound, similar to the sizzling of lamb chops hitting hot oil in a frying pan, came from the chest of the man running ahead. His excited expression faltered slightly, but he instinctively kept moving forward. A few steps later, he smelled a burnt odor. Before he could understand what was happening, his legs suddenly went weak, and he fell to the ground.

Plop!

What happened?

The man rolled several times on the ground. His head was dizzy, but he hadn’t felt any pain yet. Suddenly, he felt very cold, as if there was wind in his chest cavity. Lying on the ground, he instinctively reached out and touched a large, bowl-sized hole, feeling a warm, sticky sensation.

He still didn’t understand what had happened.

But the clear blue sky, the warm sunlight behind the clouds, had dimmed once again.

The man died.

His chest was pierced by a beam of light, blood flowing from under him. His eyes were still open, his brows slightly furrowed, his expression showing confusion as he looked up at the sky.

People’s running slowed down.

“Aaaahhh—”

A few seconds later, a woman’s scream pierced the air.

The sharp cry broke the silence. People seemed to realize something, staring at the fallen man, stopping their run, their faces filled with shock and disbelief. Some began to step back, but in the next moment, more light burst forth from the ridge, raining down on the crowd.

Buzz buzz buzz—

The sound of the miracle quivered in the air, the piercing light penetrating bodies and exploding heads, sending dust and blood and limbs flying into the air. Someone finally reacted, frantically running back only to crash into an invisible barrier and be torn apart by the golden light falling from the sky.

Cries and screams echoed on the mountain road outside Deerhorn Town, far away from the demons, marking the tragic chapter.

Soon, everything returned to silence.

On the ridge, Archbishop Ansheel watched the corpses and blood spread out on the distant mountain path. After the last person fell in the midst of the miracle, he signaled to stop and ordered the clergy nearby to clean up. Then he turned and left. Someone followed him, and he casually asked, “These are the last group, right?”

“To the north, I believe so. But just in case, I’ll release another white bird to search the area,” someone replied.

The old archbishop nodded slightly, “Hmm.”

After walking for a while, he frowned again, “There’s someone from the choir on the east side, so we don’t need to worry about that… Check the position of that Sword Ghost again. I need to know what she’s doing and why she let so many people escape. As a knight of the Pope, this is not a tidy job… Don’t you understand the consequences?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The young clergy member responded and retreated. Archbishop Ansheel walked down the ridge, glancing at the others beside him, “Those two heretics, are they still in town?”

“They have already left.”

“… Heading towards Woodworth Forest?”

“Well…”

The hesitating expression of the responding monk made Archbishop Ansheel wait for a moment. Seeing no response, he paused and looked at him with a calm but stern gaze, saying word by word, “If you don’t know, send someone to find them, to keep a close watch. Why are you still standing here? Do I need to teach you how to do your job? How are you responsible for this? Don’t you understand the nature of this matter?!”

“I understand…”

“What do you understand?!”

The old man’s face was solemn, his tone suddenly severe, “Because of the incompetence of those so-called scholars in the Faith Circle, we couldn’t find a way to awaken the land of dragons. That’s why we had to resort to those two damned heretics, feeding that accursed gem to make them activate it…”

“This miserable, heart-wrenching act, we killed innocent townspeople, their blood still warm! Who would want to do such a thing akin to evil? Yet, we did it! It was my order! Since you chose to stand here, why did you do this? Don’t you have any understanding at all?!”