Chapter 300: The Farmer and the Electricity Thief (Part 7)
"So this is... the buffer zone?" William sized up the vicinity. At this moment, they were standing inside a campsite.
Calling it a campsite was a stretch; there were only two dead logs lying horizontally on the ground for people to rest their feet on, and the fire barrel in the middle was the sole light source.
Surrounding them was a forest, heavily shrouded in dense fog.
Among the fog, there were over a dozen swirling vortexes formed by the mist. These things encircled the campsite, leading to who knew where.
Crackle.
A spark popped from the burning firewood.
"Everyone, let's rest for a moment and then head to the next area. Perhaps this time we can directly reach the final gate," Austin said.
"Are these mist vortexes the gates? Will the areas behind them change?" William voiced the doubt in his heart.
"I understand what you mean." Austin had unconsciously begun using honorifics.
"But unfortunately, the location of the areas changes every time. Otherwise, we could just try them one by one to find the exit."
"What about the area we just left?" William asked. "There should still be other trapped people inside."
"After the gate opens, that area enters a reset countdown, which is the 'magma generation' I mentioned earlier. If they haven't gotten out before then, they will die inside forever," Austin said.
"Fortunately, the gate won't close. As long as they can evade the Sweepers, they can escape from inside."
William nodded upon hearing this, and then began to check the items on him.
"As expected, only hundred-year vintage holy artifacts have any effect. The two restored Holy Arts have also disappeared..."
Sure enough, the rewards gained from lighting the generator only took effect in the corresponding area.
When he previously heard Austin mention this rule, William thought he might be an exception...
But fortunately, [Divine Eye Seal] was still effective.
Next, William explored the vicinity for a bit and also examined the Teleportation Flying Stones issued by the Church.
Naturally, the former yielded no results, but the latter exhibited spirit particle fluctuations.
"It seems a complex seal has been placed on it; it can't be used directly." His eyes flickered.
From his perspective, he could see dense spirit particle runes engraved on these Teleportation Flying Stones. He merely tried to understand them, and the next moment, a wave of dizziness hit his mind.
Left with no choice, William could only give up.
"Perhaps when my mental power grows stronger, I will be able to decipher it directly," he thought inwardly.
But right now, if he wanted to activate these Teleportation Flying Stones, he could only find those Holy Clan members with revered bloodlines.
The rescue, the Ten Commandments Stele, and those guys from the Wings of Vengeance...
William's eyes flickered; things might become increasingly tricky moving forward.
"Father William, where are we going next?" Austin asked.
The rest of the group, including Ruen, Vera, and Lynn, all looked at him.
After the several operations just now, everyone realized that the priest before them was the one with true capability.
Therefore, they had unconsciously begun to view William as their leader.
William rubbed his chin: "Since the locations of the areas are completely random, how we choose doesn't matter."
He immediately proposed some defensive measures for different scenarios, and everyone listened with utmost seriousness.
Thinking back to not long ago, several people present had even publicly questioned him.
Before long, the surrounding fog grew denser and denser. This was exactly the sign that the buffer zone was about to disappear.
"Time to go."
William stood up and chose the vortex closest to the campsite, with the crowd following closely behind.
Before long, the dense fog completely swallowed the campsite.
The sky was overcast, and pattering raindrops fell to the ground.
Occasionally, a bolt of lightning flashed across, illuminating a certain corridor.
There were some nameplates on the walls, marked with words like "Chemistry Lab" and "Library."
And among them, one plaque was the largest.
After another flash of lightning, the words on it were illuminated—Welcome to Midwich Elementary School.
Thump-thump... Thump-thump...
The heartbeat sounded sometimes far and sometimes near, making it difficult to pinpoint.
At this moment, by the window of the second-floor corridor, a few people were quietly crouching.
A moment later, someone approached from a distance.
"Rudolf, that guy holding the holy artifact is almost at the courtyard. The Sweeper is right behind him," the newcomer lowered his voice and said.
The one called Rudolf was a middle-aged man with short hair. He wore a black robe, looking like a priest, but at this moment, the clothes on his body were long since torn.
"Very good. Judging by the rank of the stone seal, that guy is holding at least a twenty-year vintage holy artifact," Rudolf lightly patted another young man beside him.
"You kid from the Zadok family, you have to go save him."
This Zadok clansman trembled all over: "H-how do I save him."
Hearing this, Rudolf grabbed the former by the neck and pushed him out the window sill: "What do you think?"
Another, larger bolt of lightning flashed across, illuminating the structure of the entire elementary school.
There were a total of two floors here. If viewed from the sky, one could see it was a square, with the middle part all being the courtyard.
When the Zadok clansman was pushed out, he happened to see a survivor run into the courtyard.
A moving red light appeared behind that person, and the surrounding heartbeat also abruptly quickened.
The crowd instantly went silent.
Seeing that the Sweeper didn't notice the second floor, the Zadok clansman finally struggled and said: "You... you can't do this! You are also a Holy Clergy Member, aren't you afraid of the Church's punishment?"
"In a place like this, the Church is a pile of dog shit!" Rudolf snorted coldly. "Compared to faith, I value my life much more."
"But without me, you guys won't be able to get out at all!" The Zadok clansman forcefully turned his head, doing his best to lower his voice. "Hey, you three, say something!"
In the direction he was looking, three Holy Clergy Members were crouching, but at this moment, they were all being guarded by Rudolf's accomplices.
"He's right. Only members of the Holy Clans can activate the Teleportation Flying Stones." Bettis frowned, ultimately choosing to speak up.
"If Mr. Rudolf is very angry, actually... you could just beat him up," Caroline whispered.
Hugh, however, turned his head and remained silent.
Not long ago, the three of them arrived here through the passage, but they also got separated from their team leader as a result.
Moreover, during their search, the three happened to bump into a Sweeper, and it was Rudolf's people who appeared in time to save them.
But the few of them didn't expect these guys to actually harbor malicious intentions, placing them under house arrest right then and there.
If Bettis hadn't thought quickly in a crisis and revealed some information about the Teleportation Flying Stones, perhaps the souls of the three of them would have been devoured long ago.
"Hmph, Holy Clan..." Rudolf spat a mouthful of saliva right onto the Zadok youth's face.
"Why should you pampered, stupid pigs be nobler than us?"
"Even if what you say makes sense, right now we truly can only rely on these people," Bettis tried her best to go along with the other party's words.
"You really suit my tastes." Rudolf came to Bettis's side, gently lifting the latter's chin. "But what you said is incorrect."
Before Bettis could do anything, he grabbed Hugh and even ripped open the collar of this Medici heir.
"A golden shield, six floating spheres..." Rudolf patted Hugh's cheek.
"The Witness Clan Medici, am I right?"
A badge necklace could be seen worn around Hugh's neck.
He remained silent, merely clenching his fists tightly.
"And you, since you are his sister, you must also possess the Medici surname." Rudolf looked at Caroline again.
Panic appeared on Caroline's face. She clutched her collar tightly and took a few steps back.
Rudolf smiled slightly and returned to the side of that Zadok clansman.
"Since we have three Holy Clan members, what does it matter if we sacrifice one or two?"
As soon as his voice fell, a feeling of weightlessness surged through the Zadok youth's entire body, and then his whole person tumbled down from the window sill.
"Ahhhh—"
Accompanied by the restless heartbeat, the sticky sound of a sharp blade slicing through flesh and blood quickly came from below.
"Go bring that guy holding the holy artifact here," Rudolf turned his head and ordered.
Someone quickly left.
Seeing this scene, the hearts of Bettis's trio all sank. If this guy discovered that the Teleportation Flying Stones were not in their hands, perhaps in the next second, the three of them would follow in the former's footsteps.
"William... where exactly are you." Bettis bit her lip tightly.
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