Chapter 35: Nun, Priestess, Saint
Thin mist drifted overhead. From a bird's-eye view, the outer walls of the Redemption Church were dilapidated, with large sections of rock layers peeling away. A wisp of pale golden mist wafted out from above the church—it was a skull, embedded at the highest point of the structure.
The massive metal doors of the Redemption Church creaked open, and wisps of cold air seeped out through the gaps. After a moment, warm candlelight flickered to life inside, completely dispelling the chill.
Su Xiao stepped into the Redemption Church. The terrain inside was not complicated. The overall layout was circular, with rings of stone steps rising toward the center. A stone pillar nearly three meters thick stood atop them, reaching all the way to the ceiling, ensuring the church's structural stability.
The stone pillar was engraved with countless names. One of them was Arus Lake, the Immortal Man.
'Arus Lake: Gate Guardian, never worshipped any deity. May you be immortal.'
A simple inscription, yet it contained so much—bloody slaughter and a final blessing.
The Immortal Man could have grown stronger without enduring the torment of ancient god power erosion, but only if he had worshipped a deity. Doing so would have meant surrender.
Beneath the Immortal Man's name was another, covered in cracks, with only a single character 'Prison' visible.
There were too many names on the stone pillar, and most were riddled with cracks. This was likely caused by worshipping deities—an act that signified betrayal of the Redemption Church.
Su Xiao stopped looking at the towering pillar and surveyed his surroundings. The interior of the church was circular, covering several hundred square meters. Against the walls stood fourteen statues, each over three meters tall, all depicting human figures.
Thirteen of the fourteen statues were damaged—some with shattered heads, others with their upper bodies completely smashed.
Behind the only intact statue was a wooden door. Su Xiao walked over and pushed it open. A faint smell of dust wafted out. Inside was a small room with a wooden bed, wardrobe, and other daily necessities. A milky white stone embedded in the wall emitted a soft glow.
The small room was a bit messy, but if tidied up, it would be a nice place to rest—well-ventilated, dry, and at a comfortable temperature.
Closing the small wooden door, Su Xiao turned his attention to the innermost part of the church. There, a slightly concave stone wall stood, its surface uneven like natural crystal.
Approaching the black stone wall, Su Xiao pressed one hand against it. A scorching heat radiated from within. This material was extremely tough—not impossible to shatter, but it would take a very long time.
If he did nothing but strike this wall every day, it would take several days to break through. Moreover, Su Xiao still had the task of exploring Doom Town.
Su Xiao activated Space Penetration. An intense resistance pressed against him. The black stone wall was made of some unknown material that actually blocked spatial penetration.
There should be a considerable space behind the black stone wall. From observing the church's exterior, Su Xiao estimated that his current location occupied only about a third of the church's total area. The remaining two-thirds were inaccessible.
At present, the Redemption Church contained only one statue and the massive stone pillar. The pillar could not be touched. The reason the church was a safe zone was precisely because of this pillar. If the three-meter-thick stone pillar shattered, the church would no longer be safe.
Su Xiao walked over to the only intact statue. It depicted a female figure in a floor-length gown, with waist-length hair cascading behind her, tied into several strands. At the end of each strand was a small ring, like some kind of restraint.
On the statue's base, a few lines of text were engraved.
'Do not help her remove the hair rings, unless you can make her understand what happiness is.'
'Do not cry! This is your mission.'
'Do not defile her, outsider. Freely use her abilities, treat her as a tool, but do not defile. When you harbor thoughts of defilement, the blacksmith will make you taste his hammer. An angry blacksmith... is more terrifying than the orphans of the town.'
Su Xiao tapped the statue with his knuckles. The life force within was faint and elusive.
This statue could not come to life. The life force sealed inside it was the key. Smashing the statue was not an option, but fortunately, Su Xiao had an item meant for this very purpose.
When he killed Gru, Su Xiao had obtained a Redemption Stone Slab. On the front of the statue's base, there was a groove.
Taking out the Redemption Stone Slab, Su Xiao pressed it into the groove. The patterns on the slab perfectly aligned with those on the base.
Crack, crack~
Cracks spread across the stone statue, and it shattered. A slender figure stumbled forward, her pale golden hair falling loose, bound by several ring-like hair clasps.
A soft figure collapsed onto Su Xiao. He caught a peculiar scent, like cotton drying in the sunlight—though that was merely a description. When the properties of light and holiness reached a certain threshold, this unique olfactory sensation emerged. It wasn't a real smell.
"Woof."
Bubu Wang sniffed the air. It clearly liked this 'scent.'
The woman who had been imprisoned within the statue now slumped against Su Xiao. He grabbed the back collar of her dress. She matched the statue's depiction—a cream-white floor-length gown, waist-length pale golden hair cascading behind her, the ends bound by hair rings.
"She doesn't look like a nun."
Su Xiao was puzzled. The Redemption Stone Slab he had obtained was labeled with the suffix 'Nun,' but the woman he had awakened didn't resemble a nun at all.
"Hey, wake up."
Su Xiao patted her cheek. The woman's eyes slowly opened, blank for a moment before gaining some clarity.
[You have consumed the Redemption Stone Slab (Nun, Saint, Redemption Priestess).]
[You have awakened the Saint.]
[Note: You can no longer awaken the Nun or the Redemption Priestess.]
[Nun: Knows many hidden secrets. Cannot leave the Redemption Church.]
[Priestess: Can assist in combat. Combat power exceeds the Hunter's by 11.6%. Can leave the Redemption Church.]
[Saint: No combat power. Knows fewer hidden secrets. Not eroded by ancient god power.]
...
Seeing this notification, Su Xiao's expression remained unchanged, but Baha's eyes widened. The Redemption Stone Slab could awaken one of three statues: the Nun, the Priestess, or the Saint.
The Nun was in her early fifties. Though past her prime, she knew a lot—over 70% of Doom Town's secrets.
The Priestess was even older, in the crone stage, but her combat power was formidable, even stronger than Su Xiao. She was a battle-hardened old woman who could take on the Immortal Man alone.
As for the Saint, her appearance was indeed pleasing to the eye, but she lacked both the Nun's wealth of knowledge and the Priestess's combat prowess.
"Combat power doesn't matter much. I mainly respect the elderly."
Baha started spouting nonsense again. Su Xiao ignored it and continued reading the notifications.
[You have awakened the Saint. You gain 50 Redemption Church Reputation.]
[Note: Do not harm the Saint. Killing the Saint will reduce your Redemption Church Reputation by -84,000 points, resulting in permanent hostility.]
[Current Redemption Church Reputation: 50 points.]
[Due to the Hunter's low Charm attribute, you cannot increase your reputation tier by consuming Redemption Church Reputation.]
[Redemption Church Reputation can be used to exchange for rare items (specific areas within the Redemption Church not yet unlocked; exchange currently unavailable).]
...
Seeing these notifications, Su Xiao was somewhat uncertain about the Redemption Church's faction alignment. The current situation was that his low Charm attribute prevented him from raising his reputation tier, but he could still gain reputation normally and interact with people inside the Redemption Church without issue.