Thanks to the efforts of Furan and Weilin Te, Una finally realized that no matter how much she screamed in this area, no one would come to save her.
Her eyes trembled as she looked at the two of them; her lips were pale, and her throat felt dry and itchy.
"First question: how did you get the divine water?"
During their previous intelligence gathering, the two of them had learned that the locals' name for the dragon transformation potion was 'divine water.' To save time, they simply referred to it as divine water as well.
Una's face was full of terror, but she desperately told herself that she had to answer their questions to survive. She forced herself to respond.
"We generally give it to those with a quota during the monthly festival; it's distributed by the priests."
"How is the quota determined?"
"Partly... by showing bravery and hunting ferocious magical beasts outside the city; partly, the priests designate those chosen by God."
"Then do you know where that divine water is kept?"
"The priests said it's in the Hall of Divine Revelation... I don't know anything else; we have no way of getting inside."
Furan turned her head and smiled triumphantly at Weilin Te, as if saying, 'See, I told you my method would work.'
Weilin Te turned her head away helplessly. She really hadn't expected this method to be effective; the trials she usually participated in rarely involved humans within the Spirit Realm, so her mind hadn't quite adjusted.
"Tell me what you know about the priest here." According to the mission description, a priest of a god had brought this miraculous water, so it was necessary to understand the situation regarding this priest.
"Which High Priest are you asking about?" Una asked in return.
This left the two of them somewhat confused. Could there be other priests? This hadn't been mentioned in the mission description.
Furan quickly inquired further and obtained the following information:
It turned out that the priest who created the divine water later felt it was difficult to manage the entire city alone, so he promoted some who performed exceptionally after using the divine water to become priests.
These priests managed minor matters on behalf of that original priest. To distinguish them by title, his title was changed to High Priest.
After that, for reasons unknown, that High Priest selected two more from among the priests who could also be addressed as High Priest.
The other two were called High Priest Angmar and High Priest Rune. The original High Priest still called himself High Priest, while the other two used their original names plus 'High Priest' to differentiate themselves.
Una didn't know the name of that original High Priest; since she was born, he had simply been called the High Priest. Those other two High Priests had only been promoted six years ago.
After hearing all the information, Furan pondered for a moment and then said:
"That's enough information for now. Let's go check out that Hall of Divine Revelation."
"So soon? Aren't we waiting for nightfall?"
"No need. Right now, those guards are all outside the city searching for us Spirit Realm Rangers. If we go now, we might find a gap in the enemy's defenses."
Weilin Te thought about it and finally agreed. She didn't have any skills that had to be used at night, and what Furan said made sense—a direct raid now might catch the opponent off guard.
"Oh, right!" Just as they reached the door, Furan suddenly turned back and approached Una, startling her and causing her heart to leap back into her throat.
"I have one last question: why is this place so dilapidated, and why are there no guards patrolling here?"
Una found it strange that Furan would ask this, but after hesitating for a moment, she spoke.
"Because we are... the 'Punished by God.' Either we or our family members did something to offend the God, so we were driven here and cannot return to our original homes."
Furan showed a smile and then said to Weilin Te:
"Alright then, let's head out."
---
At the jail of Monsa City, several new faces had arrived. They wore strange clothes and were covered in wounds; almost every one of them was brought in unconscious.
"Luca, has the guard unit finished catching all those outsiders?" The speaker had a commanding tone, with no hint of respect in his words.
After throwing two Spirit Realm Rangers into a cell, Luca frowned upon hearing these words.
He turned his head, looked at the newcomer, and said slowly:
"Priest Tols... the guard unit only captured some of the outsiders. At least half of them are still out there."
Priest Tols was very dissatisfied with this result and said:
"What is the guard unit doing? This is High Priest Angmar's order. Why haven't you executed it properly?"
"Priest Tols, watch your words. The guard unit was personally established by His Excellency the High Priest. We..." Luca replied.
Luca was answered by a sneer, followed by:
"The High Priest... how many days has it been since you've seen the High Priest? You're still trying to use him as a shield..."
Luca said neither humbly nor arrogantly:
"The High Priest merely went with High Priest Rune to investigate anomalies in the surroundings. He will return shortly."
"Shortly!" Tols's face was full of mockery. "It's been almost two weeks, and still no sign of them. Even the search party sent by High Priest Angmar couldn't find anyone. You're probably the last person in Monsa who still thinks those two are coming back."
"I'm telling you, kneel on the ground now and bray like a pack beast outside. Maybe then I'll put in a good word for you before the High Priest. If you don't act in time, the High Priest..."
"Enough, Tols. Wait until High Priest Angmar gives the order. I'll be waiting for that day."
Unable to endure any longer, Luca finally had a verbal conflict with Tols. He knew he shouldn't have, but he couldn't stand the way the other man dropped Angmar's name and simply called him 'the High Priest' as if he were the only one.
"Hmph!" Tols turned and left. "Then continue with this work. The Hall of Divine Revelation doesn't need the guard unit anymore."
"You?!!"
Luca never imagined the other party would dare to make such a decision. One must know that the Hall of Divine Revelation was an extremely important place and a vital defensive point for the guard unit.
Driving the entire guard unit out was undoubtedly a declaration of a break with Tols. In the future, he would face even more pressure from others to force him to give up his position.
"What if those outsiders invade the Hall of Divine Revelation?" Luca almost roared. At the same time, he felt a chill in his heart; these people were fighting for power and profit just because the High Priest was temporarily missing.
"It doesn't matter. With the strength of those outsiders, I can deal with them myself." Long before coming here, he had already known the situation regarding those outsiders.
Although they could defeat ordinary guards, they could only run when facing someone like Luca.
And since he believed his strength was not inferior to Luca's, he naturally did not fear these invaders
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