Chapter 110: Gulan Town

After resting for a while, everyone continued their journey, being even more cautious than before.

After startling away the evil Necromancer Badeson, Nun Cinia closed the Twelve Bibles and sat in the carriage, praying softly. Just by looking at the cover, this Bible seemed no different from an ordinary book. It emitted no fluctuations of Holy Energy, nor did it sense any danger.

“Grand Missionary O’Brien!”

Hu Feng repeated the name in his mind a few times and memorized the missionary’s name.

At first, he had thought that the nun before him had no combat power . He didn’t expect her to possess such a treasure. The Saintess Nurturing Plan seemed to require some adjustments. He needed to be more cautious during the mission. Otherwise, he might accidentally meet his doom at the hands of a mere little nun.

“My Lord, did you kill that Necromancer?”

Cinia put down the Bible in her hands and asked Hu Feng, who was sitting opposite her. Her voice was soft, and her expression was calm. It seemed unrelated to her, yet it showed confidence in Hu Feng’s strength.

“No. I chased him for more than a hundred miles but lost his tracks. I am certain he was not an ordinary Necromancer!”

The Necromancer Badeson was hidden within the Demon Hunter Card on Hu Feng’s wrist, but Hu Feng would certainly not be stupid enough to reveal it. With a calm demeanor, he lied convincingly, “Cinia, I didn’t expect the Bible in your hands to be such a rare treasure. Amazing. With this Bible, the road ahead will be much safer. By the way, who exactly is Grand Missionary O’Brien?”

If just one remaining sacred text was so powerful, Hu Feng could not imagine how powerful the missionary O’Brien himself must be!

“I don’t know. The Grand Elder of the Monastery told me that he was once a great missionary who preached everywhere on the continent. But later, for some unknown reason, he suddenly claimed to be the greatest sinner. He shackled his own hands with a pair of handcuffs and soon lost contact with the Divine Court.” Cinia spoke while recalling events from years ago, then continued, “This Twelve Bibles was left to me by him over ten years ago when he passed through Cold Moon City. Lord Hu Feng, if you want to read it, please take it.”

Cinia’s expression remained calm. To her, a priceless treasure seemed no different from an ordinary book. She was neither enthusiastic nor hypocritical; her demeanor was natural.

“Fine, I will take a look. I want to see what a Bible left by a so-called sinner looks like.”

Hu Feng did not refuse. He took the thick Twelve Bibles but did not open it immediately. Instead, he closed his eyes and gently ran his fingertips over the scriptures on the cover, sensing and calculating the power of this Bible. When he took the Bible, his fingertips gently touched the soft, fair, and delicate hand of the nun Cinia. It was warm, tender, and fragile, carrying a faint floral scent unique to a young girl.

Perhaps feeling the awkwardness inside the carriage, Cinia quickly withdrew her hand and began to murmur prayers softly. Beneath the veil fluttering in the wind, her beautiful features were faintly visible. The sound of her prayers was quiet, yet like heavenly music. As he listened, his mind gradually calmed down. The raging and violent Barbaric Divine Power also gradually calmed, making his Cultivation particularly energetic.

“Could this be the power of the Goddess’s Mark?”

Listening to Cinia’s devout prayers, Hu Feng slowly entered a state of focused Cultivation. The scriptures recited by Cinia were not unfamiliar to him. However, when he had heard other nuns reciting them in the Monastery in Wuhai Town before, he had felt nothing unusual. The same verses, when recited by Cinia, this future Saintess, seemed to carry a trace of inexplicable power.

Like other parts of the Wasteland, the Hengduan Mountains were full of dangers. After a fierce battle, the Knights were extremely careful with every step. Fortunately, the journey had been thrilling but safe so far, encountering only some magical beasts wandering outside. By evening, they finally passed through the rolling and continuous Hengduan Mountains. They had originally planned to camp in the wild, but unexpectedly, the Knights who were scouting ahead found a hidden and secluded Settlement in a valley.

Like Wuhai Town, this simple Settlement had no city walls. The perimeter was only surrounded by a simple wooden fence. The stakes were sharpened at one end and buried deeply in the ground at the other, standing close together. On both sides of the gate, two guards wearing leather armor stood alertly, watching the strange visitors. Above the gate, the three large characters “Gulan Town” were written.

“Sorry, we do not welcome outsider Demon Hunters or merchants here!”

Glancing at each other, two burly guards came forward and blocked the group’s path. Their faces were cold, showing no trace of enthusiasm or smiles.

When hunting or wandering outside, Demon Hunters often visited nearby Settlements to replenish supplies. Mercantile-minded merchants did even more so, almost visiting every place to turn around and buy local specialties. Usually, people were quite welcoming to these outsiders, exchanging things like stored animal hides or herbs for necessary salt, with both sides getting what they needed. However, some Settlements, for security reasons, strictly prohibited all strangers from entering, fearing that disguised Wandering Hunters might infiltrate and attack the Settlement’s defenses from within.

“We are Followers of a Divine Official. We follow our Divine Official, Hu Feng, to preach in the Wasteland. I wonder if there is a Monastery here? It is getting very late. It is very dangerous to sleep in the wild. My Lords, look, can you let us go in to drink a cup of hot water? We will stay for only one night and leave as soon as it gets light tomorrow morning!”

Commander Randolph had walked around the Wasteland for many years and had rich experience. He was not dissatisfied with the cold rejection from the two guards and instead smiled broadly on his face. While speaking, he took out a silver token from his chest, engraved with a holy Monastery. Usually, even the coldest Settlements would make an exception for missionary-preaching Missionaries who traveled everywhere. After all, over these years, the Divine Court had developed many believers in the Wasteland.

“No. There is no Monastery here, nor are there any believers!”

The faces of the two guards grew colder, their tone stiff. No matter what Randolph said, they stubbornly blocked the group’s path.

The Wasteland was full of dangers, especially at night when many powerful magical beasts came out to hunt, making it particularly perilous. Considering the safety of Nun Cinia, Randolph tried every possible means. The dispute between the two sides soon attracted the attention of many people. Many figures emerged from within the wooden fence. They all had dark expressions and blackish skin, whether due to the local environment or long-term malnutrition, it was unclear.

“Nonsense, if that is not a Nun, what is it? We are Missionaries, not Wandering Hunters. There is clearly a Monastery inside the Settlement. Why do you refuse to let us in?”

When the standoff continued without resolution, Saliel, the man with a sharp triangular face, suddenly stepped forward to accuse the two guards who would not yield the path.

Following his gaze, he could faintly see a few figures of Nuns in white robes, surrounding an old Nun who leaned on a cane and had a hunched back. Seeing that she had unintentionally attracted everyone’s attention, the old Nun pondered for a moment and whispered a few words into the ear of one of the Nuns. The latter quickly came to one of the guards. “Rajabel, Elder Aurora has ordered you to let them in!”

“Nun Bella, this…” The guard named Rajabel looked troubled.

“What’s wrong, Rajabel? Don’t tell me you are going to defy Elder Aurora’s orders?”

Nun Bella, wearing white robes, snorted coldly, turned around, and led Randolph and the others. After crossing the gate, they went west all the way, stepping on the bluestone path to a simple Monastery.

The place was quite large, but unlike Monasteries in other places, there were no magnificent buildings or tall Crystal High Towers. It was dark and damp, with lush trees visible everywhere. Perhaps to save money, only a few dim torches were lit in the large Monastery. Watching their departing figures, the guard named Rajabel did not get angry but instead sighed secretly.

“Great Divine Official, welcome to our Gulan Town. I am Elder Aurora of the Monastery!”

After the carriage entered the Monastery, everyone found that the old Nun leaning on a cane had been waiting for a long time. Her face was full of wrinkles, revealing a mouth of teeth that were about to fall out. “I am very sorry. Although this Monastery has been built for a few years, we have never had the financial means to repair it. We have no Faith-guarding Knights, and not many Nuns. The conditions are quite simple. I hope our Lords do not mind.”

Aurora, the hunched Elder, smiled awkwardly and looked at the visitors before her with cloudy eyes. When she saw the veiled Nun Cinia, her body trembled slightly, almost imperceptibly, before returning to normal.

“The conditions are a bit harsh, but for us Missionaries who often travel everywhere, it is not much of an issue. If we temporarily lack sufficient funds, the Monastery can be simple, but some necessary items are still required to better teach the believers. Elder Aurora, where is the Holy Bead of the Monastery?”

Hu Feng pretended to be a serious Divine Official and unobtrusively stated the real point of interest. It didn’t matter to him if this Monastery was so poor it only had two wooden cabins. What he truly cared about was the Monastery’s Holy Bead. He hoped to use the Monasteries along the way to quickly heal Holy Angel Taliana.

“I am sorry, Divine Official!” The old Elder Aurora paused, smiled dryly, and continued, “There is no Crystal High Tower here, nor is there a Holy Bead!”

After saying a few simple words, Elder Aurora whispered something in Nun Bella’s ear, instructing her to lead people to serve a simple dinner. She smiled kindly and then turned to leave with the help of two Nuns, entering a dark palace and never appearing again.

Perhaps feeling that the Knights preaching everywhere were tired, or perhaps because it was rare for Missionaries to come here, the dinner served by the Nuns was rather simple and had few varieties. However, every dish was made exquisitely, complete in color, smell, and taste, along with several jars of self-brewed wine. After a tiring day, the Knights were already starving, and their appetites were wide open. Even the two accompanying White-robed Priestesses ate until their faces were red.

“Cinia, be careful tonight!”

Unlike the Knights with wide-open appetites, Hu Feng took only small bites. When the Knights had had enough to drink and eat and were preparing to rest below, he whispered a reminder to Nun Cinia.

The moment he stepped into this town, he had felt something wrong.

The cold-faced guards, the indifferent residents, and even the air here had a strange smell. Especially this damp and dark Monastery gave him a very bad feeling. There were traces of faint Death Aura hidden everywhere. On the surface, it looked fine, and even the experienced Commander Randolph could not detect anything. But it could deceive ordinary people; it could not deceive him, a powerful Lich.

“Badeson, find out the situation inside this Monastery as soon as possible. But you must hide your whereabouts. Do not act against anyone without my order!”

As soon as he settled in a Side Hall, Hu Feng quietly summoned the Necromancer from the Demon Hunter Card. The latter bowed to receive the order and turned into a mass of black shadow, leaving quickly. Regarding hiding one’s whereabouts, no one was more skilled than these Necromancers who were born loving to hide in the dark.